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Short takes: DNA tests are race against time

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Underscoring the potential of DNA testing to solve decades-old crimes but also highlighting the
need for expeditious handling of evidence, a Cleveland grand jury returned an indictment in a
20-year-old rape case this month — one day after the statute of limitations for the crime
expired.

A little over a year ago, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine encouraged local law-enforcement
agencies to send in untested rape kits that had been sitting on shelves around the state for years.
Deluged with more than 2,300 kits (more than half of them from Cleveland), the state crime lab is
in some cases racing against the 20-year statute of limitations in processing the old kits.

Once Cleveland police were notified that the DNA matched that of a 60-year-old inmate, Charles
Steele, who already was serving time for another rape, they had a hard time tracking down the
victim. The woman, who has not been identified, had moved out of state and has used several last
names; a phone number they had for her no longer was in service.

It’s a frustrating turn of events to crack a case, then be unable to prosecute it. However,
Cleveland police said last month that they could have nearly 400 cases to pursue once all the kits
they submitted have been tested.

Justice came too late for one victim, but there no doubt will be good outcomes from this drive
to track down and punish criminals.

Ohio crops depend on bees, so inspectors are vital

Honeybees are vital to Ohio’s economy: They not only produce valuable honey, but these highly
industrious workers are responsible for pollinating many of the state’s fruit, vegetable and seed
crops, including apples, melons, cucumbers, pumpkins, sunflower and canola.

Humans couldn’t do nearly as efficient a job at these tasks, and they would expect to be paid.
Which is why it is troubling that fewer Ohio counties are hiring inspectors to make sure local
hives are healthy and to offer assistance to prevent diseases from spreading.

In 2008, all but eight of Ohio’s 88 counties had inspectors; by last year, the number of
counties without inspectors had more than doubled to 17.

This is worrisome for a multitude of reasons; it places a greater burden on the Ohio Department
of Agriculture to try to inspect hives.

It comes at a time when more bees are dying or abandoning their colonies because of “a perfect
storm of insecticides, pests and diseases,” said Rod Pritchard, president of the Central Ohio
Beekeepers Association.

And it impairs education at a time when more hobbyists are taking up beekeeping and could
greatly benefit from visits by inspectors. Ohio had 4,377 registered beekeepers last year, a jump
of more than 26 percent since 2008.

Ohio always has had a strong history of leadership in beekeeping and research, leaving apiarists
worrying about how to raise money to boost inspection programs. Inspectors aren’t all that
expensive; the typical county pays about $2,500 a year.

Understandably, counties find their budgets stretched thin these days, but these funding cuts
could come back to sting.